R-E-S-P-E-C-T, tell me what it means to me. Former Lady Cyclone Mikki Lock knows all about being respectful because she said she was raised up that way. Lock has been a vital player on and off the court for the Lady Cyclones.

She was awarded the Sarah Clement Female Athlete Sportsmanship Award from Russellville High School. The award represents the best female athlete who shows sportsmanship in their sport. Lock played point and shooting guard under Matt Kordsmeier.

"It's about honor, respect and it shows that I'm respectable on the court and I respected others," Lock said. "Personally that feels great to me to be selected for this award."

"Mikki is a wonderful student-athlete and a good role model for younger people much like Sarah whenever she played," Lady Cyclone basketball coach Matt Kordsmeier said.

"They [Clements and Lock] both have a lot of similarities in the way they present themselves on and off the court," Kordsmeier said. "I think Mikki was very deserving of the award and she was always courteous to the other team. She never showed any emotion on the court and was just an outstanding person overall,"

Even though she was lady-like on and off the court, Lock was still an intense athlete as one of the Lady Cyclones vital players. She always kept a smile on her face and was respectful, regardless of what the scoreboard said after the buzzard sounded. Lock said she gives her mom credit for raising her to be respectful.

"I've always been taught you don't act up and when you watch people play and you see someone being disrespectful, you just know you don't ever want to look like that, and so you don't," Lock said. "I've always tried to respect others, respect my coaches, the referees and my mom has taught me to do that."

The sportsmanship award was named after the late Clement who died at the beginning of the new year. Clement was a former basketball, golf and track athlete at RHS. She was All-State in girls basketball and track in both her junior and senior years. Clement graduated with highest honors and was admitted to the RHS Athletic Hall of Fame. Kordsmeier said Sarah was one of those athletes he will never forget, and the three years she was at RHS she really set the tone for the program.

"I knew Sarah always liked to laugh a lot and you could tell she was always respectable to her coaches, the people above her and her teammates," Lock said. "Knowing her and knowing how she displayed herself as a sportsman is pretty cool to receive this award in her honor."

"I was uplifted and said, 'wow they picked me'. I know Sarah lived her life in a way where she lived her life to the fullest and to have fun. To honor her and her life, I think it's a great honor to be selected," she said.

The Lady Cyclones reached the state tournament for the first time in six years, only later to lose in the first round. Lock said her favorite moment in her basketball career was finding out the team made state. She said she enjoyed the experience even though the team lost and felt it was due to playing in a new conference.

"We wanted to go to state. The Lady Cyclones hadn't been in six years," she said. "It was really cool when we found we were actually going.

"I think I have given my all and been respectful. That's what I have given Russellville High School. I was really honored to receive this award, because I know it's a prestigious award and it shows more of your character than how you play on the court."

Lock said she was blessed to have coaches who taught her right from the beginning not to have a hot head and be respectful or enjoy warming the bench. She said her mom always pushed her when things weren't going well and with the support of her mother and teammates, Lock was able to give her all.

"She has always pushed me harder when I was upset with myself," Lock said. "She told me you just have to work hard and you have to practice. She said I could do it, so my mom has been my biggest inspiration."

"It's hard to explain what I love about basketball because I just love it," she said.

"I've played since I was 6 or 7 for the Boys and Girls Club, Lock said. "It's a rush, it's fun. I love it, and I can't say what I love about the game of basketball. I just love it."

Lock said she worked hard for Kordsmeier, who stressed being young ladies first and competitive basketball players second. She also said she has given her all to Russellville. Lock's hard work paid off with an academic scholarship for Ouachita Baptist University in Arkadelphia, and she has the promise of working into a basketball scholarship for next year.

"I really have given my all to this school. I really have tried and even my sophomore year I didn't play that much, but I stuck with it," Lock said. "I'd say I've been consistent. I worked on and off the court on my own time as well as coaches' time."

"Hopefully she learned that winning isn't everything, and as a coach we try to teach a lot of these kids about life," Kordsmeier said. "That it's not always going to be easy for them, and I think she learned that and she had to work extremely hard to get where she was."

"Coach Kordsmeier has done a great job. If most of the girls before they started basketball weren't doing so well with their grades, he taught them they had to take care of that first if they wanted to play, and they turned themselves around. He's a really great coach, and he teaches a lot about life and character," she said.

"I've got the chance to play at a [NCAA] Division II school for college basketball," Lock said. "That's a huge honor and if I could thank one person, I would thank the Russellville community and the school because that's a big honor, to say, 'hey I can play at the college level.' That's huge."

Some of us hold our tempers better than others. Lock has been able to overcome bad attitudes, pressure and disappointment, only to turn it into hard work. Lock said she was able to be successful through hard work. She said she had a really good season and loved playing with all the girls this past year.

"If you're upset with someone, you work it out and you be the bigger person and shake their hand at the end of the game or hand the ball to the referee, or you muster it out and listen to your coach," Lock said. "You don't back talk your coaches, and I guess that's why I was successful."

"Mikki persevered through a lot of tough times this year, and that's something I learned from her. Even when things were not going very well at school or whatever, she was one of those kids that never let it show," Kordsmeier said.

"I think I worked really hard and I practiced all the time through summer ball. I worked extremely hard, and in the end it paid off. In the end it does pay off, even if you're going through it and you don't think it's not going to work out and you asking yourself why? Why should I be doing this? What's the point? It pays off, so I'm glad I worked hard and I persevered through it because it definitely paid off," Lock said.

Lock brought a new definition to the meaning respect. Her hard work and dedication for the game of basketball was rewarded through the spirit of Sarah Clement. She always seemed to hold her head up high, look deep down and find a way to be the bigger person. At the end of the game when all was said and done Lock knew she honored the game, her team and herself.

"I would like to say I'm really honored, and it was an honor just to be selected to receive the award because it's very prestigious and I think it should be held very high," Lock said. "It really makes you feel good when people look at you and they see that I play with respect.

"My coaches taught me to be competitive while keeping your cool. I was very lucky to have all my coaches teach me to be respectful and have good sportsmanship."

"On the court Mikki was a very intense player. She played the game with a lot of passion. She really went after the ball all over the court and had an enormous amount of desire to win. She was also a great teammate and a great leader," Kordsmeier said.

"Sarah was a very special player of mine, of course I miss her dearly. I had the privilege of coaching her for my first three years at the high school. We were very successful, and Sarah was a big part of that reason. She was a very wonderful person. She has a wonderful family, and that goes for Mikki as well."